The discovery of classified documents at President Joe Biden’s private residence has sparked controversy among Republicans who claim there is a double standard regarding the mishandling of government records. The White House confirmed that the classified documents, which date back to the Obama administration, were found inside a locked garage at Biden’s Delaware home. The discovery followed the recent news that an initial batch of classified documents from Biden’s time as Vice President had been found in an office at Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C.
In response to the news, some Republicans have demanded that the FBI raid the President’s home, similar to what happened to former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home last summer. A number of prominent conservatives have also suggested that President Biden’s son, Hunter, may have seen the classified documents. Donald Trump Jr. tweeted, “Given his extensive ties to China, Russia, and Ukraine, did Hunter Biden have access to Joe Biden’s garage and therefore the classified documents?”
Additionally, some Republicans have demanded that the White House release visitor logs to President Biden’s private home in Delaware. Rep. Lance Gooden of Texas (R) has written a letter to President Biden demanding the release of the logs, claiming that the American people deserve to know who had access to the garage where the classified documents were found. Trump Jr. tweeted in response to Gooden’s letter, “Apparently now we know why they’ve been so secretive about the visitor logs at Joe Biden’s home. Don’t Americans deserve to know? If it was Trump they’d be clamoring for it!”
It is unclear if visitor logs exist for President Biden’s private home in Delaware, as private residences do not typically keep visitor logs. Regardless, the possibility of Hunter Biden visiting his father’s home during the six years since Biden was Vice President cannot be ruled out.
During a press conference, a Fox News reporter asked White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre when the Biden administration would “release a log of visitors to the Wilmington house.” Jean-Pierre did not answer the question directly or indicate whether a log existed, instead pointing out how current White House policy on its own visitor log differs from that of the Trump administration. She stated, “We did something that the last White House got rid of, which is instituting the White House logs. Did you ask the last administration why they got rid of the White House logs?”
